Signors of one-fourth to charles g



l No. 62|,779. Patented Mar. 2'3, |899.

c. L. ANsLEY & .L (T. ToPHAm'.

AIB BRAKE.

(Application filed Jim. 15, 1898.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet I.

No. 62u79.

Patented Mar. 2s, |899.v c. L. ANsLEY & T. ToPHAM.

AIR BRAKE. (Appxiatien am n. 15, 189s.)

a sheets-sheet 2.

(No Model.)

Tm; "parus FUER: to. PHOTO-Lune.. WASHINGTON. u, c.

No. 62|,779. Partented Mar. 28, |899.

C. L. ANSLEY & J. T. TOPHAM. l

A l R B R A K E.

(Application led Jan. 15, 1898.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3,

(No Modul.)

Nrrnn STATES I PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES L. ANSLEY AND JOHN. T; TOPHAM, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA, AS- SIGNORS OF ONE-FOURTH TO CHARLES G. ARTHUR, OF SAME PLACE.

AIR-BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 621,779, dated March 28, 1899.

Application filed January 15, 1898. Serial No. 666,802. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

' Be it known that we, CHARLES L. ANsLEY and JOHN T. TOPHAM, citizens of the United States, residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State of Georgia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Air- Brakes; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to certainimprovements in that form of railway airbrakes known as theWVestinghouse system. As is well known, this system provides a separate air-brake cylinder and an auxiliary airreservoir for each car, which are connected with the train-pipe running to the locomotive and which are operated by a triple valve,

the arrangement being such that the brakes are applied by a transfer of pressure from the auxiliary air-reservoir to the air-brake cylinder. This is effected by a reduction of pressure in the train-pipe by means of the discharge-valve on the locomotive. With this form of air-brake the application of the brakes necessarily reduces the air-pressure in the auxiliary reservoir, and when the brakes are released the air is discharged from the airbrake cylinder into the outer air before the pressure is restored in the auxiliary reservoir. This recharging proceeds slowly for the reasonthat the admission of air from the trainpipe to the auxiliary air-reservoir takes place through a small passage-way around the triple-valve piston. It follows,therefore, that if for any reason a second application of the brakes is required immediately after the brakes are released there is a relatively low pressure in the auxiliary air-reservoir to rely upon, and upon several successive applications of the brakes before the auxiliary air-reservoir could be refilled to its proper pressure the supply in the auxiliary reservoir would be so depleted as toleave the train in a well-nigh helpless condition. O ur invention is designed to obviate this dangerous state of aairs, and it contemplates such improvements as cause the auxiliary air-reservoir to be replenished with its maximum pressure of air immediately after the brakes are applied and before the struction and arrangement of parts that allows air to pass to the auxiliary reservoir While in the positionof brakes applied, but.

more particularly in a device which constitutes an improvement in the retainer which is the'subject of the sole application of Charles L. Ansley, filed August 28, 1897, Serial No.' 649,875, and which retainer is designed to hold the parts -in such position as to allow this operation to take place, all as more fully hereinafter described and particularly claimed. p

Our invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichl Figure l is a sectional View of the apparatus, taken through a'portion of the brake-cylinder head, the triple-valve, and retaining devices, the parts being shown in the position of brakes applied. Fig. 2 is a similar view, but showing the parts in the position of brakes released. Fig. 3 is a View similar to Fig.. 2, showing the parts in the position for applying the brakes with the graduating-valve closed5'and Fig. 4, adetail partlylongitudinal sectional View of a sliding cap and'inclosed triple valve operating piston; and Fig. 5, a vi'ew similar to Figs. 2 and 3, showing the parts in an emergency position; and Fig. 6,- a detail modification of the matter of Fig. 4.

In all the figures the same reference letters and vnumerals indicate correspond-ing parts, and the parts marked with figures indicate the old parts of the Westinghouse brake,while the parts marked .with reference-letters indicate our combined improvements.

Referring to Fig. 1, the numeral 1 indicates a part of the brake-cylinderk2 is its head, which is cored out to form a passage-way 3, through which compressed air is admitted to the cylinder in applying the brakes and with which head the air-pipe from the auxiliary air-reservoir is connected at 4.

5 is the connection for the train-pipe, and the numerals 5 to 27 represent the various parts of the triple valve of the Westinghouse IOO system. These parts need not be described in detail, as they are all old and in common use; but it is essential for thepurpose of clearly distinguishing our invention and accentuating its importance to describe the general operation of the Well-known triple valve and its defects in applyingand releasing the brakes. From this description the cylindrical sliding cap or casing A audits lettered parts, which constitute our retainer, are omitted.

Assuming that the triple-valve piston 9 is to the extreme left, as in Fig. 2, which is the normal position of the brakes when released, the brakes are applied as follows: The engineer reduces pressure in the train-pipe by operating the discharge-valve. Up to this time the auxiliary air-reservoir is on one side (the left) ofpiston 9 and the pressure in the trainpipe through chambers G and 7 is on the other (the right) side, and an equal pressure. on both sides is maintained through the passage-Way around the said piston; but when the engineer reduces pressure in the trainpipe, and consequently in the chambers 6 and 7, the piston 9 moves over to the right and strikes against the spring-seated stem'S, as in Fig. 1. As the pistonv 9 thus moves, carrying the stem 11 with it, (through a loose drag connectiom) the graduating-valve 10 is also moved to the right and uncovers a port 27. This port is in open communication with the space about the piston-stem and the auxiliary air-reservoir, and as valve 10 uncovers the port 27 air from the auxiliary reservoir enters from pipe 4 and passes through ports 14 and 1G to passage 3 to the air-brake cylinder, it being borne in mind that the casing or cap A and port (l are not now considered. The brakes are now applied and piston 9 moves slightly back to the left from springstem 8 and the graduating-valve 10 closes port 27, as shown in Fig. 3. Now to discharge the brake-cylinder and recharge the auxiliary air-reservoir the engineer throws a heavier air-pressure on the train-pipe than that carried normally by the auxiliary reservoir, and this forces the piston 9 against the auxiliary-air-reservoir pressure and to the extreme left, as shown in Fig. 2. This causes the passage-Way 26 of the slide-valve 13 to cover the ports 1G and 25, and as 16 is in communication with the air-brake cylinder and 25 is the exhaust-port opening into the outer air it Will be seen that the air from the airbrake cylinder is discharged into the outer air and the brakes released. Immediately following this the depleted pressure in the auxiliary air-reservoir is restored to its normal state from the train-pipe by a flow of air through chambers 6 and 7, around piston 9 through passage-Way 23, (see Fig. 2,) thence to the space around the slide-valve 13 and to the passage-Way 4, leading to the auxiliary reservoir. It Will thus be seen that the air in the auxiliary reservoir can only be replenished by this old form of device after the air-brake cylinder is d ischargcd and the brake released. This is very objectionable for the reasons already set forth.

Our invention provides means for recharging the auxiliary airreservoir While the brakes are still applied or before the air is discharged from the brake-cylinder, so that the auxiliary reservoir is ready to do its full and effective Work at its normal pressure 011 a second application of brakes immediately after the brakes are taken olf. For effecting this We provide a cap or casin g A, placed within and sliding against a bushing c on the inner Wall of the inclosing casing H. The cap A at its head is provided with a projecting flange a', which forms a seat for the pistou 9, and at its rear end with a hollow boss a2, which forms a chamber for the graduating spring-stein S of piston 9. The latter chamber is closed by a screw-cap a3, into which stem 8 slides. The cap A is also provided with ports c c for the admission therein of air from the chamber 7 to the valve-operating piston 9. Passageway is provided in the bushing e, as shown at CZ in Figs. 1, 3, and 5, and in the end of the cap A, as shown at CZ' in Fig. 2, or in the inner wall of the cap at its end, as shown at m in Fig. 6, to admit airpressuresfrom chamber 7 to slide-valve chamber 13, from whence it enters port 4, leading to the auxiliary reservoir.

The operation of our improvements is as follows: Vhen the brakes are applied, the reduction of pressure in the train-pipe acts as already described-t'. e. the piston 9 moves over to the right, striking thestem 8 and moving sliding cap A to the position shown in Fig. l, opening graduating-valve A10 and port 27. Air then, flows from the auxiliary air-reservoir to the air-brake cylinder as follows: from port 4 through space around slide-valve 13, through ports 27 14 1G and passage 3 to brakecylinder, applying the brakes. The valve 10 then graduates and closes port 27 and the piston 9 moves slightly back against the head of sliding cap A, as shown in Fig. 3. Then the auxiliary air-reservoir is replenished through the passage from train-pipe 5 and chambers G and 7 through passage-Way d, around sliding cap A into slide-valve chamber 13 to pipe 4, thence to auxiliary air-reservoir, recharging the auxiliary to its normal pressure while the brakes are applied. During this operation the piston 9 is held in its position as shown in Fig. 3 by the retaining-cap, the outer surface of which presses against the inner walls of chamber H. A packing-ring a4 is also fitted in cap A, pressing against the Walls of chamber H, preventing the passage of air between those surfaces. The inner Walls of the sliding cap A also serve the same purpose or purposes of guiding the movement of the piston as the piston-chamber in the Testinghouse triple valve. The opposite or auxiliary side of the sliding cap being a plain vsurface Whose exposure is greater than that of the opposite or train-pipe side of said cap, the auxiliary side is given a stronger pressure IIO ` than thetrain-pipe side, which thus holds the iliary air-reservoir.

valve-operating piston 9 inthe position of brakes applied. To release the brakes, the operator on the locomotive moves the handle or lever of the brake-valve to the extreme left, bringing the main-reservoir pressure in communication with the train-.pipe pressure. The air-pressure in the main reservoir being in excess of that in the train-pipe supplies a volume of air to the train-pipe, striking piston 9 in chamber I, and port CZ not being sufficient at this juncture to convey so great a volume of air to auxiliary air-reservoir in a limited time the pressure in chamber I ou the trainpipe side is caused to rise higher or in excess of that in the auxiliary air-reservoir, which excess pressure then causes piston 9 to move the cap A to the extreme left, occupying position of brakes released, as in Fig. 2. Air noivflows through passage 23 to slide-valve chamber 13, also through passage 4 to the aux- In an emergency application, as shown in Fig. 5, an extreme movement to the right of slide-valve 13 and ports 15 and 1G opens the auxiliary reservoir to the brake-cylinder and also through a port 17 shown forces, piston 9 down, opening valve 2l. That part of valve 13 Which controls port 17 is also shown in dotted lines in this figure. The air-pressureA in the train-pipe then lifts valve 22 and passes up around valve 2l directly to the passage 3, and thence to the brake-cylinder, giving the full effect of the air in both the auxiliary reservoir and that in the train-pipe.

In Fig. 6 We have shown a modification of the cap part, in Which the rounded head of the casing A is made fiat and in which a port m is formed in the left or back Wall of the casing or the seat against which the piston rests. This port m is designed to take the place of the passage 23; but on account of its changing position, moving as it does with cas'- ing A, it performs the additional function of replenishing the auxiliary reservoir When transferred from position of brakes released to position of brakes applied. The port m will perform this function not only when ap plied to casing or cap A, as shown, but when applied to any equivalent sliding seat or bushing for the main piston. The port 'm also takes the place of port d, as When it is used the air is fed around the main piston instead of through or around the outer wall.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim isv 1. In an air-brake, the combination with the air-brake cylinder, of an auxiliary air-reservoir, a valve and valve-chamber having communicating passages to the auxiliary reservoir, a valve operating piston, retaining means for recharging the auxiliary reservoir alone and not the brake-cylinder when in the position of brakes applied, said means consisting of a sliding casing inclosing and carrying said piston, said casing provided With air-pressure passages to the said piston, and an air-passage to admit air-pressure through vthe valve-chamber to the auxiliary reservoir, substantially as described.

2. The sliding casing, in combination with a piston, a stem and a graduating-spring with which said piston is adapted to contact, said casing provided with a seat for said piston, a chamber for said stem andspring, a closingnut for said chamber in Which said stem slides, said casing also provided with ports for the admission therein of air-pressure and an air passa ge-Way for permitting the recharging of the auxiliary reservoir, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In an air-brake of the kind described, the combination with a main piston and a stem `and graduating-spring, of a sliding seat for said piston, a chamber for said stem and spring, said sliding seat provided'with ports for the admission of air to the piston-chamber and with a passage-Way for the passage of air under pressure from the main pipe to the auxiliary reservoir, whereby When said sliding seat is moved to the position of brakes applied .from the position of brakes released, said passage-Way is also moved to the position of brakes applied, substantially as described.

4. In an air-brake of the kind described, the combination with the air-brake cylinder, the auxiliary air-reservoir and the triple valve, of

means for passing the air around the main piston of the triple valve when in the position of brakes applied, and a device for automatioally retaining the triple-valve piston in the said position, said device comprising a movable casing'for said piston, said casing provided With a passage for air from the train line to the auxiliary reservoir, the auxiliaryreservoir side of said casing and piston at all times exposing the same area, the train-pipe side of said casing and piston exposing an unequal area When in position of brakes applied, and both sides of casing and piston exposing anequal area when in position of brakes released, substantially as described.

IOO

In testimony whereof We affix our signatures in presence of two Witnesses.

CHARLES L; ANsLnY. JOHN T. ToPHAM. 

